What It Takes To Be Happy
by ShinningSunStar
Summary: Max has always been a troubled camper, but this year David realizes it something more than just being troubled.
1. Chapter 1

What it takes to be Happy

Chapter 1

It was the same routine every year, the car would drive up to the edge of the camp property, Max would get out with a small backpack, then the car would speed off in a cloud of dust and Max would start the long walk up the dusty gravel trail that lead to the entrance to Camp Campbell. David had watched it happen the last two years with mild interest, of course he cared for all his campers and wanted the best for them, but Max had always stood out to the him the most especially after Parent's Day last year. This year was different though, David could tell…. something was off, and he was going to find out what.

The first thing that really stuck out to David was Max's lack of interesting in doing camp activities, or more specifically ruining camp activities with Neil and Nikki. Usually the three of them were always running around with some mischievous plan up their sleeves. Today though, Nikki and Neil were off down by the lake with not hide nor hair of Max in sight. That was when David knew that something was up, it was unlike Max to not be with them. He ambled his way down to them, "Hey you two, where is Max at?" "Hey David!" Nikki shouted as she turned away from Neil to run up to David. "Max said he wanted to just chill in his tent for the day, something about showing you mercy for today…or something like that." Neil said turning to look up at David. "Alrighty then! Why don't you two go on over and join the other campers for a while? I told Gwen and them to start gathering wood so that we could have a big bonfire this evening!" David in his overly chipper voice. "Aww yeah, fire!" Nikki screamed jumping up and down before turning to Neil and grabbing his hand "Come on Neil, we've got to find the best wood to burn so that the fire gets really big!" With that the two were off, Neil shouting various curse words as Nikki dragged him off towards the dense forest.

Having taken care of Neil and Nikki from trying to stop him, David turned and headed in the direction of Max's tent, set on seeing firsthand what was really going on. "Max?" David asked shifting from side to side on his feet outside of Max's tent. "Can I come in Max?" "No!" Max shouted back angrily "Just…. just shut the fuck up and go away, okay?" he continued albeit sounding more hoarse than angry this time. "Come on Max… I just want to check on you! We're going to be doing a giant bonfire tonight and Gwen and all the campers are out searching for wood. I even was able to convince Neil and Nikki to help out, don't you want to at least join them?" David asked in a peppy but almost pleading voice. "Look I'm fine David, so why don't you just run along and bother some other poor fuck with your worrying." Max whispered back to David in what sounded like a begging voice. "You certainly don't sound fine to me Max, you leave me no choice if you won't cooperate with me then I'm coming in!" David shouted, pushing open the tent's flap and stepping inside. He turned to his right to see Max curled into a ball on his cot facing the tent's back wall. "I told you not to come inside." Max said, curling up in more on himself as if it was possible. "Max, you can't just stay in your tent the entire day, it's not okay." David replied sitting down on the end of Max's cot. "Come on buddy, what's going on?" "Why can't you just leave me the fuck alone...huh David? Is that so much to fucking ask for?" Max asked, rolling around to look up at David. "Yes, Max. As your camp counselor, it's my job to make sure you're okay at all times. I wouldn't be doing my job right if I didn't." David said looking down on Max with worry evident in his eyes. "Well you've checked on me now and I'm fine so why don't you just leave me alone and we'll call it a day okay?" said Max sitting up and glaring at the end of his cot. "Max…." David whispered reaching a hand towards Max's arm, surprised when Max yelped in pain at the contact. "Ouch! What the fuck David?! Warn a guy before you go grabbing them would ya?" Max glaringly replied shooting daggers at the counselor. "Woah! I'm sorry Max but I didn't grab you that hard…." David anxiously replied giving Max a confused look. "Yeah…. well maybe you don't know your own strength ever think of that?" "Max, I don't believe that's the case here, did you get hurt? Is that why you don't want to hang out with your friends today?" David questioned turning further onto the cot to get a better look at Max. "No, okay? I told you I was fine! Now leave me the fuck alone!" Max growled turning away from David and scooting further across the cot wincing with every bit of movement made. "Max this is serious! You don't look okay to me and your obviously hurt." David said in what sounded to Max like an angry tone "Now are you going to tell me what happened or am I going to have to call your parents?" Max's whole body whipped around to face him and David watched as Max's eyes widened, his face turning as white as the bedsheets below the two of them.

"Please…." Max whispered with the most pained look David had ever seen on his face tears creeping up into the corner of his eyes "…. please David…don't call my parents…" With another concerned look and a sigh David gently placed his hands-on top of Max's shoulders and looked him in the eye "Then you need tell me what's going on, or at least show me where your hurt at…." The relief on Max's face was evident though David could still read the intense nervousness in his eyes. "Fine…. just…just don't freak out okay?" Max pleaded as his hands reached for the corner of his favorite blue jacket. "I promise, scouts honor" David replied holding up his hand in the form of a pledge. Max snorted at that, the tension in him lifting a bit even at the weight of what he was about to do churning around inside of his chest. "Of course, you were a scout." He replied rolling his eyes at the small smile on David's face. "Okay." Max sighed out as David's face took on its serious expression again. Ever so slowly Max pulled his jacket up over his shorts, then his navel, and eventually over his head. David gasped at the sight before him and Max felt his stomach sink six feet into the ground.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Emotions turned tides in David's stomach as he searched for words, eyes taking in the full extent of the heart-wrenching sight in front of him. How could anyone in their right mind inflict such pain on anyone, especially a child such as Max? Sure, he wasn't the most behaved of campers but nothing he could've done could justify the wounds that David could clearly see etched into Max's skin. Bruises littered the boy's entire torso, from the tops of his shoulders to the paper-thin sides of his waist. It wasn't just the bruises that caused David's blood to boil, it was the nausea-inducing view of the delicate bones of Max's ribs pushing out from the skin of his chest. This is what threw David into action, carefully leaning forward he curled his arms around the young boy's body and lifted Max to rest on top of his lap. Max wrapped his arms around himself, refusing to give David the satisfaction of seeing the tears biting at his eyes. He just knew that this had been a bad idea, what did he think David was gonna do? What _could_ David do? Nothing that's what, David was just a stupid fucking camp counselor after all.

Still though, that didn't stop the tension from leaking completely from Max's frame as he finally gave into David's hug and came to rest his head against the older man's warm vest covered chest. "Why didn't you tell me about this?" David questioned, wanting so badly to wrap his arms tighter around the ten-year-old but refraining from doing so for fear of upsetting the bruises. "What the hell are you supposed to do David, huh? Save me from them and take me away like some goddamn knight in shining armor?" Max questioned clenching and unclenching his fists, refusing to really look David in the eye still. "Look, there's nothing you can do alright? So why don't we just get out of this tent, join the rest of the group, and pretend like this never even happened. Okay?" Finally looking up at David with a cold stone expression on his face, as if he had never really had any hope to begin with that David could do anything at all to save him.

"So, it's _them,_ is it? Fuck, I _knew_ it. I can't believe I didn't piece it together sooner." David said so quietly Max wasn't even really sure he had heard him say anything at all Well I'm sorry Max, I truly am, but if you think that for one goddamn minute that I'm just going to leave it be than you don't really know me all that well after all. "David replied staring right back at Max with a fire and determination in his eyes that Max hadn't even seen when it came to David's love for the Camp. David's response left Max wide eyed speechless for once, and David took this opportunity to pick up Max's hoodie and push it down over the top of Max's head. "Now, why don't you lay back down while I go get you something to help with the pain? I'll tell Gwen and the rest of the campers that you're not well enough to participate in the activities for today? Alrighty?" David asks partly back to his chipper self. "Whatever." Max says quietly from the confines of his hoodie. "Okie dokie then! I'll be back quicker than you can say the Camp Campbell Camperific Motto!" David replies heading out the front of the tent flap, and into the bright light of the day.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

At some point or another the exhaustion from lack of proper sleeping the last few months must have finally overcome Max because the next time he blinks his eyes open David is there next to him again this time in a chair with a book in his hand. He turns to the small table to him and stares past the sweating glass of water to the two small blue pills resting next to it. David by this time, having noticed the movement on the cot, is questioningly watching Max as he continues to stare with a wary expression at the table. Its then that what Max is staring at dawns on him. "Max…. they're just a form of pain reliever…you don't have to take them if you don't want to…" David says giving Max a knowing and sympathetic look. The boy turns to David with a look of relief and shame, he knows that David would be the last person to ever try to drug him but it's hard to remember that when all he can think about it the numerous times that his parents did just that. Coming to some conclusion that Max still wants to take the medication to help with the pin, David quickly thinks up a solution to absolve Max's fear that the drugs are anything more than what David stated they are. "Why don't I take one first and then after a little while when you see that nothing happens if you want to, you can take the other one. How does that sound?" Max, being uncharacteristically quiet through it all, gives him a small nod then scoots down the edge of the cot closer to David's chair watching as the older one popped one of the blue pills in his mouth and took a sip of the water glass to drown it down with. "What time is it?" Max asks noticing that the light around the tent is increasingly softer than when he must have dozed off. "It's close to supper time now, everyone just finished up with the wood collecting and should be heading up to the mess hall about now. Would you like for me to run up and grab you something?" David asks just now realizing that he cannot remember the last time he or Max had anything to eat. "No, there is no way in hell you can convince me to put that shit you call food inside my body today" Max responds in a sneering tone. "Oh, come on Max, you have to have something to eat!" David cries back in reply "Eat shit David," is Max's only response to the pleas of the counselor. "How about some chew chunky chocolate granola bars huh? Would you eat those? I have a few stashed away in my cabin mainly for rain days and when Gwen's really having a bad day." David says glancing at Max to see if the idea of chocolate had any effect on him. "Alright, Alright fine, damn just stop with the pleading would ya? Makes you sound even more like a pussy than you usually do." Max said resigning to the idea of eating something to get David to shut up. "Language Max…" was all David said, stopping by Max's cot on his way out of the tent to ruffle Max's unnaturally puffy head of air. He was not even two steps outside of the tent when the shout of Max's voice had him turning right back around in a blur of motion. "David wait up!" Max shouted sprinting out of the tent and towards David. "Damn you and your long legs," Max grunts out finally catching up to him "I'm coming with you" he says loud enough for David to hear him. "I shouldn't be gone that long Max, there really is no reason for you to come with me." David replies smiling at Max. "Yeah well someone's got to make sure you don't get lost trying to get there." Max responds sarcastically, kicking dirt around on the ground with his shoe. "If you say so…." David says with a questioning look on his face, he knows there's more to it than that but he also knows that whatever it is isn't something that Max is going to tell him without a struggle. So with a clench of his fists and wave of resolution, he starts forward again towards his cabin more determined than ever to help Max, no matter the cost.


End file.
